Review: Bruno's Dream

Bruno's Dream by Iris Murdoch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

As gold is to the Midas-touch, so words are to the Murdoch-touch. This writer rounds up words so keenly - beautiful constructions do result. After finishing The Sea, The Sea last month, I officially began my Murdoch bender, and, oh, it isn’t over yet. I have just acquired The Philosopher’s Pupil, but first things first. Here are my impressions of Bruno’s Dream.

The notion of a dying old man who hopes to find closure and understanding with his only living child, was deeply appealing to me. But, this old man is a scabrous thing, unlikeable and needy. Apart from his clumsy and impatient attempts to mend bridges, paucity of merit alone marks his character, and, somehow, whatever ails him (other than old age) has deformed him horribly.

The cutlery of Murdoch’s character development is devilishly good. There is no one we dearly love and no one we actually hate. There is a ball and chain fastened securely to the heart of each character. Baggage they have each lugged through life. Then, through Bruno's wish to make amends, crazy stuff begins to happen. They each go through a personal crisis which loosens each ball and chain. They change.

We can identify with each of these characters, just a little, which is what casts the spell so well. Ok, the creepy, elfin-like and puzzling Nigel is an exception. I did not like him and can’t imagine anyone who would.

It is possible that there are too many characters. It is also possible that the zany channeling of Twelfth Night-like switcheroos gets tiresome. But, with quotes like this peppering each page, I can overlook those teensy aggravations:

“Brooding about the past is so often about how one might have won and resentment that one didn’t. It is that resentment which one so often mistakes for repentance.”

You will be moved by this book.


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